


observations

by yosuke



Category: Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth
Genre: Angst, Community: badbadbathhouse, Fantasizing, Leather Kink, M/M, One-Sided Attraction, Praise Kink, Video Game Mechanics, a liiittle spoiler-ish... i guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-26
Updated: 2015-08-26
Packaged: 2018-04-17 09:56:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4662357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yosuke/pseuds/yosuke
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Yosuke's not quite sure he believes it's "nothing important" anymore.</p>
            </blockquote>





	observations

**Author's Note:**

> the good news is, the kink meme is doing wonders to my writer's block--the bad is news is, ALL I CAN WRITE AT THIS POINT IS GAY & NSFW??
> 
> but i digress!! a request for akihiko/yosuke piqued my interest, but i couldn't think of a plausible scenario that legitimately explained why mr. haha-yeah-no-homo-bro and mr. what-the-hell-is-a-romance were getting it on sooo... i went for the next best thing: _angst._ B))
> 
> original prompt here!  
> http://badbadbathouse.livejournal.com/745.html?thread=125673#t125673

Their new leader doesn't always bring Yosuke along on the main party, but he always ensures Akihiko is by his side, somewhere on the front line; so when they're fighting Shadows far too weak to match their strength in dungeons they've already explored—courtesy of Elizabeth's requests—he can't help but notice the way Akihiko completely immerses himself in battle.

It's a simple observation, at first.

Akihiko looks pained while he brings the gun to his temple, flashes of _regret_ and _helplessness_ and _inadequacy_ taking refuge in the brief instant of his closed eyelids before Polydeuces emerges atop him, and nobody's the wiser when his gaze holds nothing but genuine sparkles of excitement, as is the norm. Yosuke notices his tensed shoulders. Notices how 'to become stronger' leaves his mouth like he's a broken record, as he seeks purpose through gloved fists. Notices his disappointment in situations where really, he should be feeling relieved, or accomplished.

And he'll be damned if he doesn't know a thing about tension and disappointment, and especially not about broken records.

* * *

He notices more trivial details later on, when his Sub-Persona fits Minato's tastes well enough that he joins the team permanently. Notices how Akihiko snaps his fingers on instinct every time he's particularly riled up, or licks his lips in contemplation of his next move, or how his eyebrows furrow in frustration when he mentions his hordes of fans (and that, it messes with Yosuke's nerves), but what stands out to him the most is how happy, how _carefree_ he acts the minute Shinjiro enters the picture. This stirs an emotion he can't name inside him - except he can, and it's jealousy, and knowing what it is doesn't make it any less indecipherable.

Akihiko brings a left hand to wipe the sweat off his brow and Yosuke wonders how that can possibly be comfortable, innocently enough. He curses in a low drawl when the enemy gets a preemptive attack and Yosuke lingers on that for a moment too long before brandishing his knives, fast enough to attack first even during an ambush, and for once in his life luck must be smiling in his favour because it's enough to stun the Shadow; he's left in awe at just how _close_ they escaped a certain loss, watching flames and electricity and ice finish what he started.

"Hey," brown eyes mirror his own after they've emerged victorious. "Good job out there," Akihiko congratulates him with a tiny smile and just keeps walking ahead, but Yosuke stalls as he replays the words in his mind, a fluttering feeling in his chest that he chalks up to... admiration for the boxer, his perpetual ache for the slightest of compliments, hell, his weakness to Akihiko's elemental affinity, _something_ resembling normalcy.

He stops trying to fool himself once he's alone, long after the 20 of them have scattered across the school to get their well-deserved rest and yet he finds himself restless.

Yosuke fidgets as he goes over the events still fresh in his memory; Akihiko's slender fingers on his temple, concealed by dark leather and glistening under the hospital's pale neon lights, mouth drawn to a thin line. Absentmindedly, he brings his hand to the crook of his neck and realises he's never seen the gloves off. He knows for a fact that Akihiko's hands would be strong; the thought alone causes shivers to ripple down his spine as he pretends the touch across his collarbone is cold and rough over his skin. Akihiko could crush him.

Only he wouldn't, because he's far too kind, _'good job', 'you did well', 'he's reliable'_ making Yosuke dizzy, and he imagines the texture of leather in his mouth, its distinctive smell just barely reaching him, tries to imagine the look he'd receive as he swirled his tongue around each digit—would he look demanding, watching his every move? Or would his eyes be half-lid, as bashful as Yosuke feels at the moment? He can nearly taste it, can nearly feel the other's lips against his own, idly lets the fantasy change in different directions until he's kneeling before Akihiko and fumbling with his belt _(a belt—what if his wrists were tied behind his back?)_ and a clothed hand strokes his cheek, urging him to continue...

He lets out a shaky breath he didn't know he was holding, arms slumping to his sides. He's... not doing this.

He's hard and every part of his body (below his waist, specifically) screams against the decision, but Yosuke knows from experience how uncomfortable it is to face someone he can't avoid, having let hormones get the best of him.

Because that's all it is; natural insticts going haywire, nothing important, nothing that actually has a meaning, even as half an hour passes and he's still awake - jacket over his chest as a makeshift blanket, face flushed warm, hair disheveled, _"Sanada-san"_ an inaudible whisper as he nears the edge. The guilt always stops him short.

He turns to his side and forms a much tamer fantasy of drifting off with Akihiko's arm around his waist, instead.

* * *

Yosuke's not quite sure he believes it's "nothing important" anymore, when he hears of Akihiko's personal reasons for fighting and he almost wants to cry, to tell him he _understands_ , to do anything he can to make him smile, even a little. Acting on those impulses is out of the question, he's well aware.

"Man, you sure are awesome," he settles on a grin.

The upperclassman chuckles in response and they enter the Clock Tower together, ready to fight; ready not to repeat the same mistakes.

**Author's Note:**

> mentions of the battle based on Tru Events, thank you paralysis knife for wrecking those weird-ass birds and their scary corrosion moves
> 
> ~~i Love akihiko sanada and i have a thing for those gloves myself? good bye,~~


End file.
